


I Met Somebody in a Sea of People

by chocobee



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Merpeople, Alternate Universe - No Powers, M/M, Merperson Prompto Argentum, Multi, Mutual Pining, Road Trips, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-09
Updated: 2019-04-09
Packaged: 2019-12-26 09:27:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,445
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18280370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chocobee/pseuds/chocobee
Summary: The summer after graduating high school, Noctis sets out from Insomnia on a road trip with Ignis and Gladio, aiming to explore the rest of Lucis before his duties as soon-to-be-king start piling up against him. While resting up for a week at his dad's old hideout in Cape Caem, Noctis has a chance encounter on the beach below the lighthouse that turns his world - and the rest of their trip - upside down.





	I Met Somebody in a Sea of People

**Author's Note:**

> This is an entirely self-indulgent fic, but I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do. I have the entire rest of the story planned out, it's just a matter of finding time in between classes and homework to write it out. I'm also writing a fic for the Promnis Big Bang this year!! So I'm going to need to start focusing on that soon.
> 
> A couple things to note, since I couldn't really find a way to explicitly state or hint at them in the story: there's no daemons or war with Niflheim in this AU. Noct's still the prince, but there's no magic (except for some good ol' mermaid magic later on lol). Besides that, most things are the same as canon, I think? Tags/characters are gonna be updated as they appear, since I'm still not 100% on who I want as Prom's mer-family lmao.
> 
> Title is from 'Shark Attack' by Grouplove.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

“Hey, Noct, wake up. We’re here.”

Noctis groans and cracks his eyes open after a bit more coaxing from Gladio, swatting at the man when he pokes at his cheek. “I’m up,” he mumbles, practically tumbling from the car.

Ignis is already standing outside, stretching his arms above his head, stiff from driving straight through the past few hours. He catches Noct by the elbow when he stumbles, and shakes his head fondly at the sheepish, sleepy smile Noct gratefully sends his way. Once Noct’s steady, he lets go and circles around the car to join Gladio near the trunk.

Noct stretches himself out as well, joints popping loudly. He lets his gaze wander up the winding dirt path leading up the hills in front of him. The top of the Caem lighthouse looms well above the trees, glinting in the light of the setting sun, though he can’t see the house from where they parked the car.

It’s already been nearly a month since they’ve been on the road, traveling around the Lucian countryside and getting a taste for life outside Insomnia. Noct’s still sort of amazed at how different things are out here, but there’s something incredibly freeing about endless roads and wilderness stretched out in front of them, where they can roam as they please, and all they have to worry about is where they’re headed next.

For now, they’re stopped for a week in Cape Caem to take a break from all their camping and driving. King Regis has a little old hideout by the lighthouse, intended to be a safe place they could escape to should something disastrous happen, though they’ve thankfully never had any reason to make use of it. So here the three of them are, exhausted in the best way and looking forward to a full week of running water and actual, soft beds.

“C’mon, Princess. I’m your Shield, not your packmule,” Gladio calls from the back of the car, peering around the raised lid of the trunk.

Noct grins, reaching to take a few bags from Gladio’s arms. “I mean, you might as well be. You have all those muscles for a reason.”

“Yeah, to kick your scrawny ass,” Gladio says, slamming the trunk shut and locking the car. He scoops up the few bags he’d left aside on the ground. They only really need to bring their personal belongings and the groceries they’d picked up along the way, since the house will have most of what they’ll need for the week.

Ignis watches the exchange, arms laden with luggage as well, with a wry smile. “Shall we?”

“Lead the way, Specs.”

It’s only a short walk before the house comes into view. It’s small and a bit rundown, but has a homey look to it. After growing up in such a huge, ornately decorated place, it looks perfect. Noct can’t help but grin at the fact that they get to call it theirs for the week.

Ignis unlocks the door and they all file in. The air is stuffy and warm inside, and everything is coated with a thick layer of dust. It’s nothing a good cleaning won’t fix, as much as Noct isn’t looking forward to it.

Upstairs, Noct leaves one of the bigger bedrooms for Ignis and Gladio to share and makes for a smaller one tucked away near the back of the house, and drops his bags in a heap beside the bed. The next hour or so is spent airing the place out, and dusting and sweeping and wiping everything.

After they’ve finished and collapsed onto the couch, Ignis says, “I think I saw a dock down at the beach, if you’d like to go fishing, Noct.” Noct perks up, already scrambling up to find the keys to the Regalia so he can get his gear. “I’m starting on dinner soon, we’ll call you when you need to come back up,” Ignis calls after him. He gives a wave in affirmation and heads back out into the summer air, down the hill and towards the Regalia.

Once he has everything he needs, he locks the car and swings back by the house to drop the keys off, lest he lose them. Around the back of the house, he finds what might be considered a path that leads down to the beach, where he spots a wooden dock. The sun is just starting to kiss the horizon by the time he starts making his way picking his way around rocks and dry, overgrown brush.

It’s a bit of a struggle, carrying all his fishing supplies down with him, but he manages. When the rocks give way to sand, still warm from the sun’s rays, Noct toes his boots off and stuffs his socks into them, and carefully tucks them under his arm since his hands are full. The dock’s a bit weathered and rickety, though it doesn’t seem like it gets much use out here on this secluded little strip of beach. He clumsily sets all his things down - his fishing pole, tackle box, cooler, and boots - and steps closer to the edge. For a moment, he just stands there, hands on his hips, and simply _exists._ The sun’s just starting to take on a more orange hue as it begins melting into the water, reflecting brightly against the waves. Noct takes a deep breath, inhaling the crisp, salty air, and listens to the waves lapping against the rocky shore around him, mixed with the cries of gulls circling above.

It’s peaceful, and Noct’s overcome with a feeling of calm. With nothing but the open sea in front of him, it’s easy to forget all the responsibilities weighing him down. If he could, this is where he’d be - a nice little place near the ocean, where he could go fishing every day, and watch the sun set over the water, and see the stars clearly at night. That’s just an unattainable dream, he knows, but doesn’t dwell on the sadness that knowledge brings - he’s here, right now, and he still has two months of being free from the confines of the city left, so he chooses to focus on that instead.

Eventually, Noct sits and dangles his legs over the edge of the dock, dipping his feet into the cool water below. He drags the old tackle box next to him and starts rummaging through for a lure and some bait. It used to be his dad’s, now passed down to him to use on his own journey outside of Insomnia.

Noct fiddles with his rod for a few minutes before pushing the tackle box back out of the way and casting his line out into the sea. It’s quiet for a long time, lure bobbing gently in the waves as he waits patiently for a bite. He slips into that sort of trace he often finds himself in whenever he’s fishing, where everything around him sort of fades into static, and it’s just him and his pole and his line. He’s still, except for when he recasts every so often when the waves push his lure too close to the shore.

The sun has disappeared by the time Noct’s line tugs, though there’s still plenty of light to see by. He’s ready for it, on his feet in an instant to give himself some traction in the coming battle. He starts to reel, carefully so his line doesn’t snap, but whatever he’s caught is big and strong. The end of his pole bends dramatically and he fights to keep hold of it.

When he manages to get his catch a little closer, however, he catches sight of a fishing net float up and heaves a sigh - his line must’ve snagged on it and gotten tangled. Getting it out is a headache he’s not looking forward to. Except then his line gives another sharp _tug,_ almost slipping from his grasp and into the water. There must be something in the net, then, and he readjusts his stance to compensate.

The net slowly drags through the water, closer and closer, and Noct’s proven right - there’s something in there. At first, he thinks it’s a fish. A large tail, gleaming with silver and blue scales, thrashes frantically from within the confines of the net. He’s never seen a fish that big, especially this close to the shore. He lets a grin slip at his inadvertent catch, and distantly wonders how he’ll even get it up onto the dock and back up the cliff to the house, but dismisses the thought in favor of concentration as the fish gives another tug. He'll cross that bridge when he gets to it.

But the net gets closer, and that’s when things get a little weird, because attached to the tail is not the rest of a fish, but instead a human torso and human arms and a human head.

Noct blinks in surprise, mouth dropping open and eyes widening. His grip on his fishing pole momentary slackens in his shock, brain trying to process what he’s seeing. The creature - a merman, an honest-to-gods merman - catches sight of him as well, which only causes it -him? - more panic. He’s tangled up in the fishing net, trying to pull against Noct’s line despite not having much use of his tail. He almost yanks Noct’s pole straight into the water before Noct gets a better hold on it.

For a moment, Noct doesn’t know what to do. His line is still snagged in the fishing net as well, so he’ll have to cut it out, and he’d prefer not to lose his lure. And the merman - it doesn’t really look like he’ll be able to free himself, and Noct can’t bear to simply cut his line and hope the poor thing figures something out. So he carefully keeps reeling him in, ignoring the situation for a moment and treating it like he’s catching any other fish.  
It’s a wonder the line doesn’t snap, given the size and strength of the merman, even if his escape attempts are awkward and stilted. Between his frantic movements, the splashes of water, the net, and the dying light, Noct can’t make out many details about him. Once he’s close enough to the dock, Noct realizes his next problem. Trying to cut the net away while the merman is still thrashing around in the water is going to be next to impossible. He won’t be able to pull him up onto the dock, either, and doesn’t want to risk it anyways in case he can’t breathe out of the water.   
Noct kneels down on the dock, setting his pole aside and reaching out to grab hold of the net and keep the merman in place, so his fishing line isn’t the only thing keeping him there. “Hey, calm down,” Noct says, a little awkwardly. He’s not sure the merman can even understand him, but he hopes that if he keeps his voice calm and level, it might get his point across. “I’m not gonna hurt you, I wanna help.”

The merman keeps struggling against his grip, splashing water and seafoam up. Noct sputters when some gets in his mouth, and he just about gets pulled down into the water. He’s going to have to figure something out before he loses his grip. He glances backwards; the end of the dock isn’t very far out from the beach, and he thinks that if he can get them both there, he’ll be able to keep the merman in the shallows while he works, where he can breathe and maybe feel more comfortable. Noct’s not sure how his swimming will compare to the merman’s, but it could work - and it’s the only idea he can think of.

“I’m gonna swim us to the beach, okay? Then I can get the net off. I won’t hurt you,” he explains. He tucks his fishing pole awkwardly under his arm, since it’s still attached to the mess of merman and net, while still trying to keep hold of said mess. Theoretically, he knows this is probably a dangerous idea -  he has no idea what the merman is capable of, especially feeling panicked and threatened and backed into a corner like this. He carefully lowers himself into the dark water anyway, keeping his fingers hooked into the net while also wrapping an arm around the merman as he treads in the water. “It’s okay,” he says again, and starts swimming them both towards the shoreline.

It’s difficult, because the merman fights against Noct the entire way. His grip slips a few times, hard to hold in the water, but he manages, for the most part. He’s exhausted by the time the sand starts sloping up enough for him to stand, and he turns to drag the merman the rest of the way out of the water, still close enough where the waves can reach him. His tail flaps wetly against the sand, splashing a little water up, but he doesn’t have much traction to get away anymore. Noct feels confident enough to release him, setting the fishing pole beside him and leaning his hands on his knees to try and catch his breath. The merman finally stills, staring up at Noct with wide, panicked eyes, chest heaving as well.

“I’m not gonna hurt you,” Noct tells him as he crouches down to assess the situation. Now that he’s out of the water and still, Noct can get a better look at him - he’s pretty pale, a few blond tufts of ruffled hair peeking through the gaps in the thick rope of the net where it’s stretched over his head. His vibrant, violet eyes watch Noct’s every move like a hawk. One arm is trapped snug against his side, and the other is bound tightly in an awkward position across his chest. The net’s wrapped around his tail as well, a criss-cross pattern over brilliant silver scales that trail off into a deep blue color to match his fins. He’s got a multitude of them along his tail, and the net weaves around them all, pinning them in odd angles that look uncomfortable and painful.

All his staring seems to only make the merman more uncomfortable and afraid, because he starts squirming again, trying to roll himself back towards the deeper water. He flinches when Noct reaches out to grab hold of him again. “Sorry,” Noct says, but doesn’t let go. “It’s okay. Just- wait here for a sec, I need to go get something to get that net off okay? I’m trying to help you.” The merman doesn’t say anything, just flicks his eyes nervously across Noct’s face, searching for- _something._ Unsure if he’s being understood, Noct makes a sort of _stay_ gesture, slowly releasing the merman and standing. He waits a moment, until he’s as sure as he can be that the merman won’t leave while he’s gone (and he really hopes he doesn’t, because he’ll be taking Noct’s fishing pole with him), and then takes off for the dock.

It’s still close; his sandy feet meet the wood in less than a minute. He’d had to swim a little off to the side to avoid some rocks on the shore, but not by much. He grabs the handle of his tackle box, almost dropping it with his wet hands, and turns back. The merman is still where he’d left him, waves lapping up against him. He’s pushing against the net, but not making much of an attempt to get back into the ocean anymore. When Noct gets back and kneels with his tackle box in the sand where the water won’t reach it, the merman cranes his head as much as he can to warily watch Noct as he digs through the box.

He finds a small pocket knife near the bottom, under a pile of lures. Noct closes and locks the lid of the tackle box, just in case the water manages to get close enough. The merman stares intently at him as he approaches, trying to eye what Noct’s got in his hand. He kneels down beside him and gives what he hopes is a reassuring smile, flipping open the blade with a small click.

The merman’s eyes snap to it immediately, and he makes a quiet, fearful noise as his struggles start up once more with a renewed vigor. He strains against the net while simultaneously trying to roll himself away from Noct. “Shit,” Noct says, scrambling to close the blade, pocket it, and reach out to grab the merman again. That only makes him thrash harder, desperately trying to free himself. “It’s okay,” Noct tells him, pinning his shoulders down into the sand. “It’s okay, just calm down-”

It takes a minute for the merman’s flailing to cease once more. Noct’s not sure if he’s tired himself out, or has simply given up, realizing he doesn’t have much of a chance at escape. He stares up at Noct, and the fear in his eyes tugs at Noct’s heartstrings. “It’s okay, I’m not gonna hurt you,” he says, for what has to be the millionth time, wishing with everything he has that the merman would just _believe him._ “Sorry I didn’t warn you. I need the knife to cut away the net, that’s all.” He slowly reaches back into his pocket and produces the closed blade. “I just wanna help. Once I get the net off, you can go home.” He flips open the blade, and the merman tenses underneath his remaining hand, but doesn’t move otherwise. “Just stay still, and I’ll be as quick as I can, okay?”

Noct gives the merman one more glance-over, and decides to start up near his head and work his way down towards his tail. He shuffles on his knees behind the merman’s head. His tail flaps anxiously now that he can’t see what Noct’s doing. “You’re okay,” Noct murmurs, carefully bringing the blade down. “I’m gonna start cutting now. I’ll start up here and work my way down.” He’s still not sure if the merman can understand him, but on the off-chance he can, Noct figures telling him what’s going to happen beforehand might help to make him less afraid.

The net’s wrapped pretty tight, so there’s not much give when Noct tries to life it to get the blade under. The merman flinches when the flat of the blade presses into his hair, but remains deathly still afterwards. Noct carefully starts sawing the rope, and the merman recoils again when the the blade breaks through with a soft snap. Noct moves onto the next piece, working his way down the side of the merman’s head so he’s not cutting dangerously close to his face. He goes slow, taking care not to scare the merman further or slice into delicate skin.

The merman’s flinching lessens after a while, when he’s come to expect the rhythm of the creaking of the rope as Noct cuts through it. He’s still tense, but he keeps still for Noct while he works. When he gets down to the merman’s shoulders, his fingers brush against his skin. It’s cold, but feels like human skin, except maybe a bit slimier. The merman jolts a little at the touch, but relaxes slightly when Noct mumbles a reassurance.

He keeps going, working around where the merman’s arms are pinned against him. The merman’s still on edge, eyes nervously flitting between Noct’s face, taut with concentration, and wherever his hands are carefully cutting. As Noct begins sawing through a strand of rope near his wrist, he carefully avoids cutting the bracelet of pearls he’s wearing and works around it. Once both of his arms are freed, Noct sits back on his haunches to give them both a break, and the merman takes a moment to peel the net away from his upper half. He sits up and stretches gratefully, and Noct hears him give a little sigh of relief, and it has the corners of his lips tugging up the slightest bit.

Now that the net’s gone, Noct can see that the merman’s features a little better, and is kind of surprised to realize how attractive he is. His pale skin is smattered with thousands of tiny freckles, nearly covering every inch of the human part of him, and something deep within Noct wants to trace all of them, mapping out constellations and patterns. His hair is still ruffled and sticking up in different directions, a little drier than it’d been before. Noct’s transfixed as the merman runs slender fingers through the blond strands, trying to tame it a little. Noct’s eyes dart down to where his tongue pokes through pink lips in concentration.

The merman freezes, and Noct blinks out of his stupor. He meets the merman’s eyes, narrowed a little in suspicion.

“Sorry,” Noct says, feeling his cheeks heating up at getting caught blatantly staring. “I’ll get your tail out now, ‘kay?” He moves down to resume cutting, pointedly not looking up to meet the merman’s gaze. He’s sitting up now, leaning back on his hands, to watch Noct work. It’s almost casual, though Noct can tell he’s still nervous. Removing the net from his tail goes a bit slower, since he has to work around his fins where they sway gently with the waves. They’re thin, almost translucent, and hard to see in the water.

The rest of the net falls away within a few minutes, and the merman flexes his newly freed tail, much like he’d done with his arms. Noct pockets the knife and sits back to give him a little more space, legs stretched out in front of him, cramped a little after kneeling for so long, and massages his bad knee. It’s gonna give him hell tomorrow, he knows. When he glances back up, the merman is watching _him_ now. He still looks a bit wary, but Noct can see the relief and gratitude and curiosity creeping into his expression.

For a few moments they just sit there, eyes roaming over each other and taking one another in. Noct opens his mouth to speak, and then-

_“Noct!”_

They both startle, trance between them broken, and whip their heads towards where Gladio’s voice carries down the rocky hillside. Noct scans over the edge of the cliff, but he doesn’t see Gladio anywhere. Next to him, the merman panics, easily slipping back into the water now that tide’s risen. He disappears before Noct can even really register it, leaving only seafoam and bubbles behind.

When Noct looks back up, he spots Gladio’s bulky silhouette above him, waving both arms above his head. He stops, bringing his arms down, likely to cup his hands around his mouth. _“Dinner!”_ he calls, and it echoes around him. Noct waves back to signal he’s heard, and he waits until Gladio’s form retreats before dropping his arm back down into his lap, gazing back towards the water almost longingly. He wonders if Gladio had seen the merman, but thinks that if Gladio had noticed he wasn’t alone down here, he would’ve come down himself to investigate and make sure Noct wasn’t in any kind of danger.

Noct heaves a sigh, moving to push himself up and out of the cold water. He reaches to grab the net, since his fishing line is still mixed in somewhere, and he wants to take the whole thing with him anyways to get rid of it lest something else get tangled up, but something catches his eye. Upon close inspection, it’s the merman’s pearl bracelet - it must’ve snapped during his frantic escape. Noct quickly scoops the loose pearls up before they can be pulled away with the next wave, lost to the sea. He carefully deposits them into a pocket on his cargo pants, one that has a fastener so it stays securely closed and he won’t lose them.

The net drags loudly against the sand as he pulls it away from the water and towards where he’d left his tackle box, sitting back down beside it to cut his line out. He finds where his lure is tangled up and cuts that out too, carefully storing what he can back in his tackle box. Now that he’s on dry land, he shivers as a chilly sea breeze rolls in. His clothes are soaked through, sticking uncomfortable to his body. His hair’s starting to dry, stiff from the saltwater.

After making a quick stop at the dock to grab his abandoned cooler and slip on his boots, Noct gathers everything carefully in his arms and starts the slow trek back up to the house. His bad knee protests a little, straining as he climbs up the hill, but he ignores it as his mind wanders back to the merman.

If Gladio doesn’t say anything about having seen him, Noct thinks he’ll keep it a secret for now. Not that he doesn’t trust Ignis or Gladio, but he has doubts that they’ll believe him without proof, and all he really has are the pearls, and that’s hardly evidence enough. Besides, in some weird way, it feels like breaching the merman’s privacy to immediately go and tells others that he’s out there when Noct knows he wasn’t really meant to see him in the first place.

Gladio’s waiting for him on the porch when he gets back, casually leaning against the railing while his hair ruffles gently in the breeze. “Bring your phone next time, so I don’t have to yell down a freakin’ mountain,” he gripes, but he’s already on his way over to Noct to help carry everything.

“Like it’s hard for you,” Noct shoots back, playfully, without any real bite in his words. Gladio gives him an impressive noogie for the comment, nearly making him drop everything, but then plucks the cooler and tackle box from his arms, one in each hand.

“The hell is that?” he asks when he spots the net draped over Noct’s back and dragging wetly behind him.

“Old fishing net,” Noct explains, a bit breathlessly. His limbs feel like noodles, knee aching in a way he knows will be worse come morning. “My line got tangled in it. I figured we could just get rid of it or something.” He drops it in a heap beside the porch, then motions for Gladio to leave the cooler there as well.

Gladio hums. “No catches?”

“Uh, not tonight,” Noct lies.

“Well, don’t pout about it. You’ve got all week,” he says, amusement creeping into his tone. He reaches to sling an arm around Noct’s shoulders, pulling him close, but retreats almost immediately once he comes in contact with Noct’s cool, damp clothing. “You’re soaked! What, did you fall in or something?”

“Or something,” Noct grumbles, and Gladio laughs loudly. He sets Noct’s tackle box down on the porch on his way in, off to the side, and Noct leans his pole against the wall next to it. He leaves his boots outside as well, and wisely dusts the dried sand from his feet before going inside so Ignis won’t scold him for tracking it all in.

Inside, the air is warm and inviting, smelling strongly of whatever spices Ignis is using in the dinner he’s cooking. There’s music playing softly from the kitchen, something so slow and sweet sounding that he knows Ignis and Gladio must’ve been dancing together earlier. He can picture it in his head; he’d caught them doing it a few times before, though they hadn’t really been trying to hide it from him. He still remembers how flustered Ignis had looked, bangs falling away from his face as Gladio dipped him. It’s nice to see them so open like that sometimes.

Ignis glances up from the pot he’s stirring, looks Noct up and down, and says, “I think you’ll have time to shower before dinner’s ready, if you hurry.”

“Awesome,” Noct says, and quickly bounds up the stairs towards the bathroom. The warm water does wonders for his chilled, achy body. He tries not to let himself get too lost in his thoughts, since he knows dinner will be ready any minute, but can’t help thinking back on his strange encounter.

Once he’s back into his room, he leaves his dirty clothes in a small pile near the door, since Ignis will likely want to get some laundry done tomorrow anyways. As he drops his pants, the forgotten pearls rattle around in his pocket. He transfers them to a small jewelry dish sitting on the dresser for safekeeping and heads back downstairs.

Gladio’s setting the table and Ignis is plating their food. Noct busies himself with getting drinks for everyone before they all sit down together. His stomach rumbles loudly after the evening’s events, so he digs in. Gladio teases him, but he’s eating just as fast as Noct is. As they eat, the room is filled with warm conversation and laughter. Noct’s able to deflect any questions about his fishing trip, and the discussion soon turns to how nice it was to shower and how they’re all looking forward to the beds waiting for them upstairs.

After Noct and Gladio have showered Ignis with praise and cleaned up the remnants of their meal, the three of them go to relax in the living room, content and sleepy. Noct disappears first to go grab the pearls from his room, intending to fix the bracelet while Ignis and Gladio do their own thing. He finds some twine tucked away in one of the kitchen drawers, curls up on the armchair to give Gladio and Ignis more room on the couch, and gets to work.

He starts by tying a knot at one end of the string, then carefully begins threading the pearls onto it. The only challenging thing is trying to get the string to line up with the tiny holes in the pearls, but he manages.

He’s about halfway through when Gladio curiously asks, “Hey, where’d you get that, Noct?”

Noct glances up. Gladio’s peering at him with a sleepy, half-lidded gaze. His novel is abandoned on his chest, face down to keep his place, and he’s got his head in Ignis’ lap, long legs hanging over one arm of the couch. Ignis has set his phone aside and is looking now too, just as curious as Gladio.

“Uh, I found I found it on the beach,” Noct tells them. “The string was snapped, so I thought I’d fix it.”

“It certainly is beautiful,” Ignis remarks.

Noct hums in agreement, turning his focus back to the project in front of him, and they lapse back into silence.

Ignis and Gladio retreat to bed a few minutes later. Noct bids them goodnight, and watches as they ascend the stairs hand-in-hand. Gladio says something that Noct doesn’t catch, but it makes Ignis laugh, and then he hears a door close softly behind them. He can’t help but smile; he’s happy they’re comfortable enough around him to just… be themselves. He knows they keep things reigned in around the Citadel, so it’s refreshing to see them relaxed enough to let the act drop.

But… while he’s happy _they’re_ happy, it makes him feel a little lonely to watch them sometimes, makes him long to have someone like they have each other. His thoughts drift back to the merman from earlier, and he feels his cheeks heat up, glad Ignis and Gladio aren’t around to witness it.

He distracts himself by continuing on the bracelet, but it only serves to remind him of the merman even more. He finally strings the last pearl and ties the two ends of the rope together, then holds the bracelet up to admire his handiwork. He sits for a few more minutes before unfolding himself from the armchair and quietly making his way upstairs.

His bed is fresh with new sheets, since the old ones had been covered in dust, and Noct sinks into them with a content sigh. He holds the bracelet in his hand, running his thumb over the smooth bumps of the pearls. He’ll bring it back down to the dock tomorrow. He finds himself hoping the merman will make another appearance so he can give it to him personally, but if not, he’ll just leave it on the edge of the dock where he’ll hopefully find it, should he come back for it.

Noct lets his eyes slip closed, sleep claiming him quickly after such a long day. That night, he dreams of golden hair and silver scales, gleaming in the sunlight filtering in from the water’s surface.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed! Comments and kudos are always appreciated!
> 
> Find me on [tumblr](http://k-ovic.tumblr.com/) and [twitter.](https://twitter.com/choco_bee_) Follow for updates, and DMs are always open, so feel free to chat :)


End file.
